739 days ago

Court ruling may have significant impact, North Canterbury schools say

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from Northern Outlook

From local democracy reporter David Hill:

An Employment Court ruling around teacher working hours could have major implications, North Canterbury schools say.

The New Zealand Post Primary Teachers’ Association successfully argued that a school is ‘‘not open for instruction’’ during weekends, public holidays, vacations and outside of 8.30am to 4.30pm on school days, in a recent Employment Court hearing in the North Island.

But principals said there needed to be flexibility in a teacher’s day to ensure work/life balance and being available for meeting with parents.
Rangiora High School board of trustees chairperson Simon Green was unaware of the ruling, but said it would be ‘‘disappointing’’ if it became binding.

The teaching day was structured from 9am to 3pm and then it was ‘‘flexible’’, Rangiora High School principal Bruce Kearney said.

To accommodate the Employment Court ruling, Kearney changed the start time for staff meetings from 8.20am to 8.30am, ‘‘but you can’t put rigidities around the end time’’.

Some teachers might choose to start earlier or to remain at school after 3pm, while others needed to go and pick up their children after school and took home marking to do later in the evening, he said.

Schools also relied on teachers being available to run cultural activities and coach sports teams outside of teaching hours.

‘‘Teachers are paid a salary and there is a flexibility built in, and it is about how we can best serve our students,’’ Kearney said.

Oxford Area School principal Mike Hart said the ruling was about fairness in recognising an eight hour working day as the accepted limit for teachers.

Collective agreements had a ‘‘call back’’ clause, which gave provision for attending evening meetings, such as those with parents, or for staff training during term breaks.

‘‘Employment law is the guiding document, but we have to remember there are 12 weeks in a calendar year where we don’t expect teachers to do an eight hour day,'' Hart said.

‘‘It is a choice, where teachers can work out what is best for their work/life balance.

‘‘Some may choose to work longer hours during term time and take a break, while others choose to work a consistent number of hours throughout the year.’’

Kaiapoi High School principal Jason Reid said many teachers worked long hours with burnout a major concern, particularly for new teachers.
He said his advice for new teachers was to ‘‘pace yourself’’ in the first two years.

‘‘The challenges of doing this job are incredibly complex and it will absorb as much time as you will throw into it.’’

■ Public interest journalism funded through New Zealand on Air.

More messages from your neighbours
2 days ago

Live Q&A: Garden maintenance with Crewcut

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

This Wednesday, we're having another Neighbourly Q&A session. This time with John Bracewell from Crewcut.

John Bracewell, former Black Caps coach turned Franchisee Development Manager and currently the face of Crewcut’s #Movember campaign, knows a thing or two about keeping the grass looking sharp—whether it’s on a cricket pitch or in your backyard!

As a seasoned Crewcut franchisee, John is excited to answer your lawn and gardening questions. After years of perfecting the greens on the field, he's ready to share tips on how to knock your garden out of the park. Let's just say he’s as passionate about lush lawns as he is about a good game of cricket!

John is happy to answer questions about lawn mowing, tree/hedge trimming, tidying your garden, ride on mowing, you name it! He'll be online on Wednesday, 27th of November to answer them all.

Share your question below now ⬇️

Image
13 days ago

What's your favourite recipe for courgettes?

Mei Leng Wong Reporter from NZ Gardener & Get Growing

Kia ora neighbours. If you've got a family recipe for courgettes, we'd love to see it and maybe publish it in our magazine. Send your recipe to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz, and if we use it in the mag, you will receive a free copy of our January 2025 issue.

Image
8 days ago

Poll: When should the tree go up? 🎄

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

From what we've heard, some Christmas trees are already being assembled and decorated.

What are your thoughts on the best time to get your Christmas tree up?

Image
When should the tree go up? 🎄
  • 4.7% Second half of November
    4.7% Complete
  • 43.9% 1st December
    43.9% Complete
  • 17.7% A week before Christmas
    17.7% Complete
  • 32.6% Whenever you wish
    32.6% Complete
  • 1.1% Other - I'll share below
    1.1% Complete
2730 votes